1 Chapter Literacy Learning in Preschool and Kindergarten

Chapter 1
Literacy Learning in Preschool and Kindergarten
Preschool and kindergarten are the most important grades! I say this to
preschool, kindergarten, primary, middle school, junior high, and high
school teachers. I passionately share this with administrators, parents/
caregivers, and politicians. I want to yell it from the rooftops! The research
is clear. School systems working with families have a small window of
opportunity in which to get children off to a strong start. Research indicates
that children who begin third grade struggling in reading and writing
rarely catch up with their age-appropriate peers and tend to struggle all
the way through high school (Snow 1998). All children deserve a strong
start. Early childhood is crucial to later success in school and in life.
Literacy Learning in Preschool
and Kindergarten Can Change Lives
Emerging literacy results at the end of kindergarten are very predictive of
reading and writing achievement levels at the end of Grade 1. This finding
is extremely important because research indicates that there is close to a
90 percent probability that children struggling with reading (and often writing)
at the end of Grade 1 will remain poor readers (and often writers) by the end
of Grade 4 (Allington, 1998, 12). Kindergarten teachers can predict at the
end of the kindergarten year where most of the children will be in literacy
learning by the end of Grade 1. The good news is that teachers, beginning
in preschool, can prevent this negative spiral from occurring for at least
95 percent of young learners. What preschool and kindergarten teachers
(and other primary teachers) do or do not do really makes a difference.
All I really need to know I
learned in kindergarten.
(Robert Fulghum, 1988)
Although first-grade
interventions are necessary
for some children, the best
intervention is well-designed
kindergarten instruction
(CIERA 1998a).
Research indicates that
preschool education
is a sound investment
academically, socially, and
economically. (Barnett and
Hustedt, 2003).
Figure 1.1
Literacy Learning in Preschool and Kindergarten
11
In fact, research indicates that what happens in preschool and
kindergarten is long lasting and powerful. Kindergarten literacy learning
even affects classroom achievement in middle and high school.
Longitudinal research by Ralph Hanson and Diane Farrell (1995) tracked
close to 4,000 students from kindergarten to Grade 12. Approximately
one-third of the students had been taught to read in kindergarten. The
other two-thirds had not learned to read in kindergarten. Reading had
not been a kindergarten focus area in their classrooms. “The major
finding of this study is that students who learned to read in kindergarten
were found to be superior in reading skills and all other educational
indicators as measured as seniors in high school. This finding held up
across districts and schools, as well as ethnic, gender and social class
groups. Also, there was absolutely no evidence of any negative effects
from learning to read in kindergarten” (p. 929). These students not only
displayed higher grades but also had better attendance in school. The
study concludes, “Any school district with a policy that does not support
kindergarten reading should be ready to present new and compelling
reasons to explain why not . . . !” (929).
Receptive vocabulary refers
to words that are understood
by a reader or a listener.
Expressive vocabulary refers
to the words that one uses to
communicate as a speaker
or a writer.
The IRA and NAEYC Joint
Position Statement states
that “Failing to give children
literacy experiences until
they are school age can
severely limit the reading
and writing levels they
ultimately attain” (1998, 6).
Oral Language is the
foundation of literacy
learning.
12
Other research also confirms that children’s language and literacy
skills in preschool and in kindergarten are strongly related to later
academic success. “The receptive vocabulary scores of kindergarten
students near the end of kindergarten were strongly related to the end
of seventh grade vocabulary and reading comprehension” (Dickinson
and Sprague 2001, 273). Additionally, the quality of writing support
given to 4-year-olds is highly related to their literacy growth at the end
of kindergarten and Grade 1. And of course the children’s vocabulary
levels and background knowledge have a significant impact on their
writing.
Develop Strong Readers and Writers
The landmark work of Catherine Snow, Susan Burns, and Peg Griffin
(1998) indicates that young children develop into strong readers and
writers when their teachers focus on these foundational areas of literacy
development:
• Alphabet letter knowledge/letter recognition
• Phonological (including phonemic) awareness
• Letter–sound correspondence (phonics)
• Concepts about print and books
• Oral comprehension and vocabulary (listening and speaking,
receptive and expressive language)
LEARNING TO WRITE AND LOVING IT!
Figure 1.2
This is an important message!
Predictors of Literacy Success
As stated earlier, kindergarten teachers can predict at the end of the
kindergarten year where most of the children will be in literacy learning
by the end of Grade 1.
According to Marilyn Jager Adams, prereaders’ ability to recognize
and name letters (letter knowledge) is “the single best predictor of firstyear [Grade 1] reading achievement, with their ability to discriminate
phonemes auditorily ranking a close second. Furthermore, these two
factors were the winners regardless of the instructional approach used”
(1990, 36). However, “it is not simply the accuracy with which children
can name letters that gives them an advantage in learning to read [and
write], it is the ease or fluency [speed] with which they can do so. . . . A
child who can recognize most letters with thorough confidence will have
an easier time learning about letter sounds and word spellings than a
child who still has to work at remembering what is what” (p. 43).
PREDICTORS OF
EARLY LITERACY
SUCCESS
1.Letters
2.Phonological/
Phonemic
Awareness
3.Oral Language
According to research, knowing letter names is important because
they contain a sound typically represented by the letter. For example,
recognizing a d helps the reader to remember that its sound is /d/. The
more time children have to spend on figuring out letters, the less time and
energy they will have available to use other strategies to decode print and
to write. Thus, letter recognition must become automatic.
Literacy Learning in Preschool and Kindergarten
13
Phonological awareness
involves the understanding
or awareness of the structure
of oral language: that
oral language is made
up of words, and words
consist of syllables, rhymes,
and individual sounds or
phonemes.
Help prevent the
fourth-grade literacy
slump by enhancing oral
language development in
preschool and kindergarten.
The second best predictor of reading success is the child’s ability to
discriminate between phonemes (individual letter sounds). Phonemic
awareness is one aspect of phonological awareness. It involves
• an understanding that oral language is composed of a series of
individual sounds, and
• the ability to play with these sounds.
“Enhancing children’s letter knowledge and phonological awareness
skills should be a priority goal in the kindergarten classroom” (Snow
1998, 188). However, no matter how skilled the child is in alphabet letter
knowledge and phonological awareness, he or she still needs a strong
understanding of both the concepts about books and about print, and a
strong foundation in oral language. Oral language proficiency (receptive
and expressive), which includes vocabulary knowledge, is a third strong
predictor of future literacy success that lasts well into high school.
Figure 1.3
Turn and talk develops both oral language and comprehension.
Literacy Experiences and the
Emergent/Early Reader and Writer
Much of the landmark research on emergent literacy development comes
from the work of Dolores Durkin in the 1960s. Durkin studied the home
environments of many children who had learned to read before entering
kindergarten. She found that these children received on average 1,000 to
1,500 hours of preschool literacy experiences.
These home experiences included
• frequent read-alouds and discussion
• the teaching of alphabet letters and their sounds
• the teaching of “sight words” or high-frequency words
• providing help to the child based on the child’s questions and
requests for assistance
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LEARNING TO WRITE AND LOVING IT!
• making rhymes with words
• reading-related activities (for example, playing with magnetic
letters on the fridge to create some words or “writing” a letter to
someone)
• providing many opportunities to write
• listening to the child “read”
• engaging in literacy activities “on the run” (for example, reading
signs and food labels)
Early childhood teachers need to provide intentional literacy experiences
similar to what the children in Durkin’s research were exposed to at
home. For example, they need to
• read to the children and discuss what was read
• provide many shared reading experiences
• engage the children in many intentional activities to support oral
language development
• teach alphabet letter names and sounds
• point out “sight words” (high-frequency words)
• develop phonological awareness (an ability to play with language)
• provide many opportunities to model writing and frequently
engage children in motivating writing experiences using both
invented (temporary) spelling and for-sure words, such as their
names (see page 38 for more information on for-sure words)
• listen to each child “read” (books, environmental print, and even
their own writing) and provide instruction and modeling
• support their play
When preschool and kindergarten teachers provide the intentional
literacy activities listed above, most children will exhibit the seven signs
of emergent literacy cited by Patricia Cunningham and Richard Allington
in their well-loved book Classrooms that Work: They Can All Read and
Write (New York: HarperCollins, 1994).
Seven Signs of Emergent Literacy
The child
1.can “pretend read” favorite books and poems/songs/chants
2.can “drite” and can read what he or she has written even if no
one else can
3.can “track print” (that is, show you what to read and point to the
words using left–right/top–bottom conventions)
drite = draw
and
write
4.knows critical jargon (for example, she or he can point to a specific word, the first word in a sentence, one letter in a word, the
first letter in a word, the longest word in a sentence, and so on)
Literacy Learning in Preschool and Kindergarten
15
5.recognizes some concrete words (for example, his or her name,
the names of other children, favorite words from books, poems,
and chants, and so on)
6.recognizes if words rhyme and can make up rhymes
7.can name many letters and can tell you words that begin
with the common initial sounds (Cunningham and Allington
1994, 143)
“Although it may seem as though some children acquire these
understandings magically, or on their own, studies suggest that they are
the beneficiaries of considerable, though playful and informal, adult
guidance and instruction” (IRA and NAEYC 1998, 32). As much as it is
true that young children play and discover many things on their own, it
also is true that they need adult assistance and guidance (Schickedanz
1994, 46). Unfortunately, not all children receive the preschool support
described by Dr. Durkin.
At Risk in Preschool and Kindergarten
Large numbers of children arrive in preschool or kindergarten behind
before they even start.
“More than one in four
children in Ontario Canada
who enter Grade 1 are
significantly behind their
peers” (Dr. Charles Pascal
2009, 4). Ontario is not alone.
The research indicates that children who are most likely to have difficulty
with literacy learning are those who begin school with less prior
knowledge and skill in areas such as oral language and background
knowledge, phonological awareness, alphabet letter knowledge, print
awareness, and writing. What is most important for all children is that
schools provide strong kindergarten literacy programs and effective
intervention in kindergarten. The gift of time (waiting) is generally no gift
at all.
To determine if a child is at risk, teachers need to know what specific
literacy skills and understandings they should expect of students by the
end of kindergarten.
Literacy Skills and Understandings
in Kindergarten
Research consistently points to the importance of ensuring that children
enter Grade 1 with the attitude toward and knowledge about literacy that
will enable them to succeed (Snow, Burns, and Griffin 1998).
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LEARNING TO WRITE AND LOVING IT!
Figure 1.4
Giving children many opportunities to sit
together to look at and discuss books is very important.
Children develop literacy from birth and excel as they
• develop both a rich vocabulary and a deep understanding of
many concepts and language structures. Developing reasoning,
creative and critical thinking, and inquiry skills is crucial.
• learn that written language is a system for representing oral language.
• learn concepts about print (what is a letter, what is a word,
directionality) and concepts about books (the purpose of a book,
book features).
• learn that speech can be segmented into small units of sound
and learn how to play with language (phonological awareness) by
rhyming, segmenting, and blending for example.
• learn to recognize alphabet letters and their corresponding
sounds.
• learn how to print most letters (when provided with letter names,
sounds, pictures, or key words) and a few words (using invented
spelling and a few for-sure words, such as their names and other
familiar and high-frequency words).
• see a purpose for writing and want to write.
• recognize their own names in print in addition to a few other
familiar and high-frequency words.
• see a purpose for reading and want to read.
• enjoy being read to.
• are able to listen to and understand stories and informational
books. Their retellings must include important information or ideas.
• choose to look at books independently.
• begin to see themselves as readers and writers.
Develop Vocabulary,
Concepts, and Reasoning
Understand Concept of
Written Language
Understand Concepts About
Print and About Books
Develop Phonological
Awareness
Learn Letter Names and
Sounds
Print Letters and Words
See a Purpose for Writing
and Want to Write
Recognize Words
See a Purpose for Reading
and Want to Read
Enjoy Being Read To
Listen With Understanding
Choose to Look at Books
See Oneself as a Reader
and a Writer
Literacy Learning in Preschool and Kindergarten
17
Continuum of Children’s Development
in Early Reading and Writing
Tables 1.1 through 1.3 list the end-of-year literacy skills and understandings
for preschool, kindergarten, and Grade 1 children. This list is intended to be
illustrative, not exhaustive. Children at any grade level will function at a variety of
phases along the reading–writing continuum. Since it is important for kindergarten
teachers to be aware of developmentally appropriate expectations before and
after preschool and Grade 1, goals for those levels have also been included.
Table 1.1 Continuum of Literacy Skills: Phase 1
PHASE 1: Awareness and exploration (goals for preschool)
Children explore their environment and build the foundations
for learning to read and write.
Preschoolers . . . •enjoy listening to
and discussing
storybooks
•understand that print
carries a message
•engage in reading
and writing attempts
•identify labels
and signs in their
environment
•share books with
children (including
Big Books) and
model reading
behaviors
•talk about letters by
name and sounds
•establish a literacyrich environment
•reread favorite stories
•participate in
rhyming games
•engage children in
language games
•identify some letters
and make some
letter–sound matches
•promote literacyrelated play activities
•use known letters
or approximations
of letters to
represent written
language (especially
meaningful words
like their name and
phrases such as I
love you)
18
So preschool
teachers . . . LEARNING TO WRITE AND LOVING IT!
•encourage children
to experiment with
writing
And family
members should be
encouraged to . . . •engage their child
in conversation,
provide the names
for things, and show
interest in what their
child says
•read and reread
stories with
predictable texts
•encourage their
child to recount
experiences and
describe ideas and
events that are
important
•visit the library
regularly
•provide
opportunities to
draw and print using
markers, crayons,
and pencils
PHASE 2: Experimental reading and writing (goals for kindergarten)
Children develop basic concepts of print and begin to engage
in and experiment with reading and writing.
Kindergarteners . . . So kindergarten
teachers . . . And family
members should be
encouraged to . . .
•enjoy being read to
and can retell simple
narrative stories and
nonfiction text
•encourage children
to talk about
reading and writing
experiences
•read and/or reread
narrative stories and
nonfiction texts to
their child daily
•use descriptive
language to explain
and explore
•provide many
opportunities for
children to explore
and identify sound–
symbol relationships
in meaningful
contexts
•encourage their
child’s attempts at
reading and writing
•recognize letters and
letter–sound matches
•show familiarity
with rhyming and
beginning sounds
•understand left-toright and top-tobottom orientation
and familiar
concepts of print
•match spoken words
with written words
•begin to write letters
of the alphabet and
some high-frequency
words
•begin to see
themselves as writers
and illustrators
•help children to
segment spoken
words into individual
sounds and blend
the sounds into
whole words (for
example, by slowly
writing a word and
saying its sound)
•frequently read
aloud interesting and
conceptually rich
stories
•allow their child
to participate
in activities that
involve reading and
writing (for example,
cooking, making
grocery lists)
•play games with
their child that
involve specific
directions (such as
Simon Says)
•have conversations
with their child
during mealtimes
and throughout the
day
•provide daily
opportunities for
children to write
•help children
to build a sight
vocabulary
•create a literacy-rich
environment for
children to engage
independently in
reading and writing
(Continued)
Literacy Learning in Preschool and Kindergarten
19
Table 1.1 (Continued)
PHASE 3: Early reading and writing (goals for Grade 1)
Children begin to read simple stories and can write about a
topic that is meaningful to them.
Grade 1
children . . . So Grade 1
teachers . . . •read and retell
familiar stories
•support the
development of
vocabulary by
reading daily to the
children, transcribing
their language, and
selecting materials
that expand
children’s knowledge
and language
development
•use strategies
(rereading,
predicting,
questioning,
contextualizing)
when
comprehension
breaks down
•use reading and
writing for various
purposes on their
own initiative
•orally read with
reasonable fluency
•use letter–sound
correspondence,
word parts, and
context to identify
new words
•identify an
increasing number of
words by sight
•sound out and
represent all
substantial sounds in
spelling a word
•write about topics
that are personally
meaningful
•attempt to use some
punctuation and
capitalization
•see themselves
as writers and
illustrators
•model strategies and
provide practice for
identifying unknown
words
•give children
opportunities for
independent reading
and writing practice
And family
members should be
encouraged to . . .
•talk about favorite
storybooks
•read to their child
and encourage the
child to read to them
•suggest that their
child write to friends
and relatives
•bring to a parent–
teacher conference
evidence of what
their child can do in
writing and reading
•encourage their child
to share what he
or she has learned
about writing and
reading
•read, write, and
discuss a range
of different text
types (poems,
informational books)
•introduce new words
and teach strategies
for learning to spell
new words
•demonstrate and
model strategies
to use when
comprehension
breaks down
•help children build
lists of commonly
used words from
their writing
Source: Adapted from “Learning to Read and Write: Developmentally Appropriate Practices for
Young Children.” The Reading Teacher 52 (1998): 193–216. Copyright 1998 International Reading
Association. This is a joint position statement of the International Reading Association and the
National Association for the Education of Young Children.
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LEARNING TO WRITE AND LOVING IT!
Figure 1.5
Making Your Program
Developmentally Appropriate
The International Reading Association and the National Association for the
Education ofYoung Children (1998, 38) defines developmentally appropriate
as the goals and expectations for young children’s achievement, which are
challenging but achievable, with sufficient adult support. Developmentally
appropriate not only refers to what teachers should expect children to be
able to learn but also how best to support this learning. (For examples
of developmentally appropriate literacy expectations for preschool and
kindergarten children, see pages 18–20.)
“Excellent teachers know it’s
both what you teach and
how you teach” (Copple
and Bredekamp 2009, 48).
Early childhood teachers set developmentally appropriate goals and
expectations based on
• their understanding of child development,
• their understanding of literacy learning, including current research
in the areas of assessment and instruction, and
• their knowledge of the children’s strengths, interests, and needs.
An activity is developmentally appropriate if
• the child is able to do the task, and
• the task is worthwhile (effective) in moving the child toward a
particular goal (supports a goal).
According to Sue Bredekamp (1997), former director of professional
development for NAEYC, “Too many preschool and kindergarten teachers,
perceiving themselves as advocates of developmentally appropriate
practice, fear pushing children too much academically and fail to teach
them the knowledge and skills they need” (p. 38).
It is clear that children need focused teaching, but they also need spontaneous
and planned play experiences during language arts and across the day.
Literacy Learning in Preschool and Kindergarten
21
Literacy Learning and Play
Check It Out!
“Chopsticks and Counting
Chips: Do Play and
Foundational Skills Need to
Compete for the Teacher’s
Attention in an Early
Childhood Classroom?” by
Elena Bodrova and Deborah
J. Leong in Beyond the
Journal: Young Children on
the Web (Washington, DC:
National Association for the
Education of Young Children,
2004), 1–7. Also see Spotlight
on Young Children and Play,
edited by Derry Koralek
(Washington, DC: National
Association for the Education
of Young Children, 2004).
“The Importance of Being
Playful,” by Elena Bodrova
and Deborah J. Leong in
Educational Leadership 60,
no. 7 (2003): 50–53.
Young children are meant to play and literacy learning naturally supports play.
“Children benefit both from engaging in self-initiated spontaneous play and
from teacher-planned and structured activities, projects and experiences”
(Copple and Bredekamp 2009b, 49). “Rather than detracting from academic
learning, play appears to support the abilities that underlie such learning and
thus to promote school success” (Copple and Bredekamp 2009b, 15). There are
many reasons why children should play at home and at school. Play develops:
• Social skills and self-regulation
• Abilities to problem solve
• Oral language
• Creativity
• Knowledge and skills
Teacher scaffolding of mature (imaginative, creative) play supports
specific literacy skill development such as oral language and phonological
awareness. It also supports student self-regulation and successful school
adjustment (Bodrova and Leong, 2004). See Chapter 8, page 205, “Play
Plans Before and After Centers.”
Judith Schickedanz says it best: “We will not have done our best for young
children if we deny them the path to learning they seek through play. But, we
also will not have done our best if we fail to provide instruction. As much as
it is true that young children play and discover many things on their own, it
is also true that children need adult assistance or guidance. It is possible to
preserve childhood and to give children access to academic skills” (1994, 46).
Play-based learning and
focused teaching are NOT
mutually exclusive. Young
children need both!
Check It Out!
Playing is Learning is a great
pamphlet for parents of
preschool and kindergarten
children
(http://www.etfo.ca/ELKP/
PlayingisLearning/Documents/
PlayingisLearning.pdf).
22
LEARNING TO WRITE AND LOVING IT!
Figure 1.6
Warming our hands over the campfire
at the camping center.
Many examples of effective play-based literacy activities are embedded
throughout this book. Also see Chapter 8, “Play Plans Before and After
Centers.” Look for this icon that indicates opportunities to scaffold
learning through play-based literacy activities.
Literacy Learning Across the Day
Literacy learning occurs across the day. Writing occurs during writing
workshop (see Chapter 5) and during play at centers. It also occurs across
the day, across the curriculum. Integration is a natural approach for
early childhood teachers. Through cross-curricular integration in areas
such as social studies and science, young children are able to develop
literacy skills while acquiring important “big ideas” involving hands-on
activities. Children learn best when the concepts, vocabulary, and skills
they encounter are related to things they know and care about and when
the new learnings are interconnected (Copple and Bredekamp 2009b).
Because children learn best
when they see a specific
purpose for what they are
learning, they must be
provided with interesting
activities that make sense to
them and that allow them
to apply the strategies they
have been taught.
Check It Out!
Figure 1.7
Watching the butterflies hatching leads to drawing and
writing the lifecycle of the butterfly, part of the science
unit, living things.
This book by Susan Neuman
and Kathleen Roskos
clearly demonstrates cross
curricular integration in early
childhood classrooms:
Neuman, Susan B. and
Kathleen Roskos with
Tanya S. Wright and
Lisa Lenhart. Nurturing
Knowledge Building a
Foundation for School
Success by Linking Early
Literacy to Math, Science, Art
and Social Studies. New York:
Scholastic, 2007.
Literacy Learning in Preschool and Kindergarten
23